


Stretching into Action

by ilyena_sylph, Merfilly



Series: DreamVerse [5]
Category: DCU (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-25
Updated: 2014-08-25
Packaged: 2018-02-14 14:42:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2195679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ilyena_sylph/pseuds/ilyena_sylph, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merfilly/pseuds/Merfilly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dinah has things she can manage, while Slade focuses on Dick's problems. Between their prodding, they mean to break the prophecy they're inside in as many ways as they can.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Stretching into Action

There was a stirring once more along the plane she had found, where she was not weary with containing her own power. Already, she had captured and blunted the sending that some cosmic force had intended as... a warning? A stir of the pot? Whatever it had been meant for, she had captured it, sent it only to those she trusted to put an end to the villainy involved. Choosing the youngest of those four had been difficult, but it would have been unfair to warn her own and leave the children unguarded.

And the one chosen was bound by love to the one she truly saw as salvation, through the daughter.

It had been a risk to let Slade Wilson have the vision. If her people had been strong enough to take him then, she could have plunged the entire world into a darkness like no other. But she had possessed faith that he would hold the line long enough to seek help.

The stirring neared her, and she prepared to defend herself, knowing from the vision that one of her true enemies sought to trap her. She would not go so easily, she had decided, and readied all of her energies to keep her place here on this plane.

~Child, cease your posturing and come with me away from here!~ 

After a few moments, the sense/perception solidified into one of the guardians of Order. Doctor Fate, as he had been known on the material plane, was a potent force within this plane, and not refused lightly.

~I endanger the material plane, should I return to it, and grew weary of containing my energies,~ she explained.

~I have a task for which those energies are needed, child, and the realm is more at risk by leaving you here.~ Nabu, and she knew now that it was the true possessor of the Helm, reached out with his energies, encompassing her… and she gave up resisting as his purpose made itself clear. Yes, she could be the fuel for this project, and it would let her return home at last.

++++

Dinah wasn't exactly sure how it had worked out that the four of them had never left the den they'd been in, but as she woke, she knew that it had possibly been for the best. She felt more human, with her true memories falling back into place with enough distance to them to let her work. Roy felt her stretching into wakefulness and muttered in his sleep, causing her to lightly brush her lips over his cheek. Better for him to sleep, she knew, even if they had wound up crashing after a full day of hammering out details and sleeping longer than usual.

She slipped free of her boy-o and glanced over… yes, Slade was still stretched out prone with Nightwing crashed on the larger man's chest.

//How is this my life?// She could not be jealous; there was a base-primal awareness that whatever existed between the two men did not threaten her place in Slade's life. Likewise, Slade either wasn't or had refused to be jealous over just how lacking boundaries between her and Roy were. 

_"You'd be there, right, if anything ever happened to me?"_ Those scared, hurting words echoed in Dinah's mind, even as Slade lazily looked at her from beneath his Titan. She gave him a slight smile, tucked her thumb between forefinger and middle one, shaking it side to side. He smirked, and she went to suit actions to statement, finding the nearest bathroom.

Roy had been hurt, severely, almost died even, and she hadn't been there. That, along with other pieces of information from each boy's dream matched with Slade's, mapped out her next move. She needed to deal with her partner, fix that, and that was going to mean leaving the Tower.

She stepped back out of the bathroom and found Troia with her shoulders back against the wall on the other side. She blinked, cocking her head to the side a little. It still surprised her how very little she knew this woman, her cousin, Roy's first love... but she couldn't change the past, just deal with the future. "Hi, Troia." 

"Hi, Canary," Troia answered, her eyes worried. "Is -- are they... I don't think I've ever been so afraid in my life as I was hearing both of them so scared." 

"They're going to be fine," Dinah assured her with a small smile. "Nightwing has Slade's full attention currently… that man won't fail someone he cares about if he's got a chance. And Roy… well, I will be here a bit more often, if that's fine by you and your team. He's a little rocky, but I know he'll pull it together today, so 'Wing has more support." It was what Arrows did: ignore any trauma that hit the self, and focus outward. "I think, if I heard Slade right, Nightwing's problem is that he's got the same perfect recall that is making it so hard for Slade to accept it all as a dream."

"He's not like Batman or Batgirl," Troia said, shaking her head a little. "He used to talk about that, that what was so easy for them he had to fight for... but that probably makes it worse, not better, doesn't it? And... it's... something, to see Slade back here. I wouldn't have expected that, not after --" she glanced away for a moment, "-- not after we couldn't save her. And we'll be glad to have you back. I might tease Roy sometimes, but we all know he needs you." 

Dinah sighed softly at that reminder. "Slade misses his wife… has for longer than she's actually been dead… but I'd wager he missed all of you more than that." She leaned back against the other wall. "I've got Slade calm about Roy. I've even got him to understand what Kory might have been thinking. But I think he's still going to ignore her existence, for sake of his pride and heart."

Troia blinked at her again. "You -- how in Hera's name did you manage _that_?! But that's wonderful, I'm glad to hear it. And at least Kory isn't on-planet right now, so that's easier for him." 

"I listened to Aunt Polly's stories," Dinah said. "I know what a warrior culture would do for an ally." She shrugged. "And as for Roy… if I weren't so upset over everything else, I'd have words with you and 'Wing, who could have taken the time to think about the culture he grew up in, to see that he could never have done that of his own free will. But… neither here nor there with everything else going on."

'Aunt Polly?' she saw Troia mouth, but it wasn't actually said. Then the rest of her words hit, and Troia paled. "What did that -- woman -- do to him?" 

"I'm betting on one of Ivy's tricks. A sleeper chemical in his blood, maybe by an implant he doesn't know she slipped in, and her wearing the trigger." Dinah rubbed her face. "I have to take him to the JSA for that, but I have to deal with Oracle first. So… if the bitch in question shows up, put her down hard! Since I can't handle him first; Oracle is the bigger threat right now."

"...Oracle is a threat? How? Is there any way any of us can help you? And don't worry, I'll deal with her." 

Dinah smiled at that last, then sighed. "Nightwing is already compromised, apparently, by people not knowing he's had it rough the last … while. At least back to the big attempt to find Oracle. That can't happen unless my partner is already being blocked, hacked, whatever. And from the dreams, it looks like Brainiac might have been involved. So I get to go unplug the system and get her to help." She shrugged; it wasn't that big a deal so long as she did not let Barbara get on the defensive. If she did, then it was going to be a messy fight. Her partner was a hell of a combatant after all, and the Clock Tower had a defense system.

"I am getting very tired of that name," Troia said after a few moments of silence, "especially aimed at my friends. I could take you to Gotham, if you want?" 

"That would be a godsend. Once I have her, I will probably … borrow a jet," Dinah said in the sweetest voice. "A nice black one." It felt good to think she could go back to wheedling Bruce for his toys, after all.

"Goddess-sent, at least," Troia said, but she was smiling now as she offered her a hand. "We're a few levels down still, but we can take the shaft up. It's not far." 

Dinah giggled. "Gee, don't tell Peej; she's usually the only woman I fly with." She did take Donna's hand, and proved that she knew just how to be a passenger for a flier or a runner.

That got her a laugh, quickly amused and warm, as Troia took to the air and headed for an opening in the hallways, and then straight up, through the layers of the Tower and out through the illusionary Tower above. "Not my sister?" she asked as they reached the open air. 

"I don't work with her often. Kicked her butt at least once, but she and I don't tend to overlap as 'active' on the League," Dinah said cheerfully. "Are you as bad as she is at in-close fighting against 'normal' opponents?" she questioned.

They dropped a foot or so in the air for a moment, Troia's body stiff against hers. "...I have no idea. Nightwing 'kicks my ass' every so often, but... he's himself. What do you mean, bad at close-in fighting? Diana is an excellent warrior."

"She is," Dinah agreed. "When it comes to strength on strength, maybe. But I used basic Judo against her, had her thrown with enough of her momentum to get by and to safety before she could recover. That's not good. So either she relies too much on her strength and speed, or I'm insulted because she did not treat me as a serious opponent at the time. Which… mind control and all that, so it shouldn't have entered her brain to go easy on me." She then grinned at Donna's visible disbelief. "And Nightwing, I am told, is a damn good fighter, but I've never had the pleasure."

"Unorthodox, is what he is," Troia muttered, but it was all affectionate amusement. "...huh. I don't know. She -- I don't think she'd deliberately insult you, so now I'm very curious. Once this disaster is put down for the time being, would you spar with me?" 

Dinah considered. "You know, I have a feeling my days of keeping people thinking that my skills aren't nearly as minimal as I have been are over, since the cat is out about me and Slade… so yes, I would. I think it's a shame that I never did get to know you, despite Roy and Polly connecting me to you." She sighed softly. "Wish she was here… she'd probably have some good advice and kick in the heads that need it the worst."

"I miss her so much," Troia -- no, that was Donna -- said softly. "She only rarely spoke of her time in Man's World, and never much of her teammates. The longer I've been here, the less I understand why, but I am sure she had her reasons. I think I'm looking forward to this spar." 

"I have stories, but most of mine are from my uncles babysitting me," Dinah said easily. "I only met her a few times because it was rare for her to come back, even to see my uncle Ted… but he did make sure to bring me to her when she did," she added. "I remember trying to hold her sword, and Ted being made to promise I learned proper fighting too… I think she was just as disappointed when she met me as an adult as Ted was that I didn't follow well in boxing or weapons."

"What made you decide not to take up weapons, then? -- sorry, that's terribly rude. I'm just... curious, I guess." Troia did sound apologetic. 

Dinah shrugged a little. "I can. I just prefer not to. I'm faster, better when it's just me, not a stick or a pointy thing in my hand." She smiled at Donna. "I respect those who can, but have you ever seen the fear a person gets when an unarmed fighter walks toward a knife or a gun? It gives you a solid edge."

"...brazen," Troia said, her voice startled and thoughtful. "Very brazen, but... I think I see the wisdom in it." 

"So did your mother, when I showed her." She then settled in for the short flight, to conserve her energy.

++++

Dick finally stirred shortly after Harper took himself to look after his daughter, letting Slade finally sit up. "Come on, Kid… you need to move a bit, if my muscles are telling me we were still too long. Hit the latrine, then food, and the gym, yeah? Get a grip on how we manage your need to retire."

Dick looked around, blinking for a moment. "Roy? BC?" but he was moving even as he questioned, rolling off the couch and to his feet. Expected pains of long-healed injuries -- didn't hit, weren't there -- and he shook his head again. "I... yeah, you're right. We've got to figure that out, and quick. I hate it, but." He paused a moment. "I'm far more needed here."

"Always were. Was going to regret it when your conscience got a hold of you if you chose the badge, to be honest, Kid," Slade told him. "Pretty sure Harper went to find his daughter. As for my little bird… she's probably got the bit between her teeth about some people. Doesn't do inactive well at all."

"Of course he went to find Lian," Dick nodded, turning those first few words around in his head a few times. His conscience... no, Slade was right, he'd known when he went to the Academy that he had to not be Nightwing in the city, but then nothing he'd done on the 'right' side of the law had gotten him any closer to bringing Blockbuster down -- 

\-- now he wasn't going to get to see that through anyway. Someone would, though. "I'd be surprised he stayed away from her this long if it wasn't for how much he hates to have her see him upset." 

"Tends to be a decent father," Slade replied to that, leading the way. Food could wait, once their bladders were empty, because Slade needed to get a plan of action in place. He knew he was as bad as his mate on that issue. "If you'd rather talk this out at the penthouse, we can… but the plan I've got in mind is going to need Tempest. He's not one of the ones your brain's balking at right now, and there's a good way to arrange this that makes them okay with not finding a body."

"No... here's fine. I can get Vic to shut the recording in the gym off, and I think better moving, anyway." Dick nodded as he trailed Slade down the hall. 'Your brain's balking at'... wasn't _that_ a polite way to say just how badly he was coping with some of what he 'remembered', he thought with a touch of wryness. "And all right, what're you thinking?" 

He was curious, wondering, even as they slipped into the gym and he leaned against the console in the wall for a moment. 

"No see, no listen," Vic's voice said, once Dick had keyed in the command. 

"Must not have come in with Logan," Slade commented, knowing the difference between the AI and the real man. "But there was talk of fires in the west? Which is where your West was." He then moved to a set of pads, more to stretch than actively work out. "As for the plan, if we can talk Tempest into braving the waters around there… stage a shooting. Body falls into the water. He's got a breather and tank for you, gets you the hell out of there."

Dick went with him, doing a very different set of stretches, feeling the burn of muscles stilled for far too long as he did. "Yeah, pretty bad set of fires," he agreed, giving a few details dredged up out of years-old memories. 

That was so simple it absolutely should work, and he blinked at Slade for a moment. "...yeah, that would do it, bodies disappear in the harbor too damned often." 

"My thought exactly. And it lays shade on the various mobs in town… someone will claim it, turf war over bragging rights… it shakes up the status quo for your trouble there, and lets Nightwing still prod it, feed info to the clean cops… if you have any of those," Slade surmised. "Given that officer Grayson and Nightwing cannot both leave that putrid hellhole together."

"Yeah, no. That would be all the proof anyone needed that we're one and the same," Dick agreed, balancing on his head and the palms of his hands, stretching his toes to the ceiling. "And there are a couple. Amy, one or two in other departments..." 

Slade nodded, flowing into the limbering stretches Dinah had shown him on their last holiday together. They stretched his muscles in directions he didn't often use… and explained just how she always seemed to bend around him and stay out of his line of fire on the run. "Simplest plan in this case is the best. We go complex, something's bound to foul us up. Troy's worried that fighting one prophetic vision is going to open us up to the real threat, and this is all a ruse… but real enough that we have to defuse it first."

"So let's get as few moving parts as possible, yeah," Dick stretched one foot down to the floor in front of his face by slow, careful degrees, contemplating. "Almost funny to hear that from one of the masters of plots within plots, but it's definitely the right idea this time." 

Slade snorted at him. "That, Kid, is being reserved for handling some of the dangers on the other side of things." His mind was running over various associates, rivals, peers -- very loosely using that term -- he'd seen in the course of those two years. He needed to set some of them at odds, break any chance of alliance, and that was going to need Wintergreen's advice guiding his intuition.

"...this is me, not _even_ asking." Dick declared, though he rolled into a different stretch and flashed Slade a smile as he said it. 

"This is me, not telling more than needed… as usual," Slade teased the young man. "We'll find out through Canary how the rest of that … filthy mess is being handled, I have no doubt. They'd better not take too long; I hear Las Vegas stages can be pretty easy to access." He had to say that out loud, even if it set the Kid's teeth on edge, because he was absolutely hating having his hands tied on the matter. Especially when everything was keeping his little bird from actually facing her issues and venting.

Dick wanted to protest at Slade, really he did, but... losing Jay, because Bruce was... different. Losing Joey and Raven and Arella because they'd been on their own. Was some of what Roy'd been through because GA and BC had been messed with? He thought it was pretty likely. Other things, too. Things he hadn't even thought of yet, probably, and they all added up to a kind of cold hatred that sat deep in his chest and the back of his head. Slade wouldn't be stupid enough to get caught, and if the League didn't do something serious... well, someone had to. "...at least she'll tell us, yeah."

"Biggest reason I knew the dream wasn't showing it all," Slade said, considering that. "She and Queen didn't tend to leave problems, and I've heard her protective streak toward Harper, and the rest of you by extension." He came fully up to his feet out of a deep stretch. "Spar, food, or go find Tempest to get this set up?" he said with his lightning swift shift of focus again. 

"Spar. I need it," Dick decided after about half a second, tucking that away to chew over later. Sparring Slade was going to take all of his focus -- possibly more than he really had at the moment. 

"You're in for it now; I've been getting better," Slade teased him. He knew he had; Dinah relied solely on her body as a fighter, and had pushed him to improve some areas he'd gotten sloppy in. He moved over to the larger sparring mats, watching Dick closely. His Kid was still a mess, would be until he made peace with everyone that had abandoned him in that false future… which was going to take time.

Dick couldn't decide what he thought of that, not entirely. Slade being better would make for a better spar, but it was also going to put him flat on his ass a lot more often! He grinned, saying a cheerful, "Sounds fun," and joined him on the mats. A heartbeat, two, and they were both moving. 

+++ 

He tapped his heel twice against the mats, hard, and Slade let him out of the pin. Rather than bounding up, he rolled just enough to sprawl on his back on the mats, blinking at Slade from under sweat-soaked hair and panting. "...you're right. You are better. Damn, that was fun. How long were we at it?"

"Too long on too little calories," Slade said, smirking. The elder man pushed up onto his knees, then just savored the sight before him. He might be in a committed relationship, but art was art! And Dick Grayson thoroughly sweat-dampened against an exercise mat was gorgeous. "Food, and get Tempest into the kitchen with us?" he suggested.

"Yeah, sounds good," Dick agreed, thankful his stomach didn't pick this particular moment to growl about how long it had been since he'd had food. He lay there another few seconds, then kicked up to his feet and headed for the door, stopping only long enough to tell Vic he could quit ignoring them -- and to ask him to get Garth headed their way. 

"Sure thing," came the real voice, and Slade looked at the nearest camera remote.

"Hello, Stone," he said politely. His memories jangled with a knowledge of the cybernetic young man disabled multiple times, of how far from himself that had made Logan fall… but they were stopping that.

"Can I hope you're too busy to test things out?" Vic asked, hint of a laugh in his voice, but the edge of worry was strong. Apparently he'd been briefed since he got in.

"Not like I'm going to answer that, now is it?" Slade countered.

"Not like we don't need you to," was Dick's two cents on _that_. The running contest between Vic and Slade over the Tower's security might never have been quite so necessary as it was right now. "Thanks, man," he added to Vic before heading on for the kitchens. 

Slade chuckled slightly at Dick's response, and Vic cut off the intercom. "I'm cooking," he declared, keeping Dick out of the fridge. "You make toast, though." He could feel the twitch of needing to be active still singing in his blood, and cooking -- rarely as Wintergreen let him do it -- could be used as meditative exercise.

"No problem," Dick said, a little surprised but entirely willing, and went investigating the breads currently in the kitchen. It wasn't long before Tempest came through the door, glancing from one of them to the other. 

"Well, nobody's bleeding, so the sweat just means sparring, right?" Tempest asked, glancing between them. 

"Just sparring," Dick agreed. "Hey. The kids alright this morning?"

"Yeah… having to make Cerdian get back in the pool when he's drying out, because he wants to be with Lian. Having to make Lian get out of the pool to keep her skin from sloughing off…" Tempest shook his head and laughed. "Featherhead's even been persuaded to take a shower and change his clothes."

"Better than me, then," he said with an amused smile. "Slade dragged me straight from sleep to sparring." 

Tempest rolled his eyes. "Like you'd be useful until you'd moved around that much anyway," he countered that.

"Waste of a shower if I just run you through it all after one," Slade said from the stove. 

"Hey, I wasn't complaining. But that's where I'm headed as soon as we eat -- and talk. Slade's got a plan to get me out of the 'Haven, but it's gonna take your help, Gillhead." 

Tempest settled into a chair and raised an eyebrow. "I seem to remember when his plans were things for us to fear," he joked lightly. It did not even phase him that they'd seen Slade destroy so much of their world in those dreams. Roy and Dick were solidly behind keeping Slade on their side as an ally, and what Garth had done down in Buenos Aires made so much of their dreams make sense. "So, what's the game plan?"

"I get myself shot at -- well, shot, but with armor and a splatter-pack -- down at the harbor, fall in, and Officer Grayson's body doesn't get found. Meanwhile -- if you can handle the 'Haven harbor, at least -- you've got an air-tank for me and we stay underwater until we're way away from the city," Dick laid it out quickly, not seeing a reason to beat around the bush. 

Tempest groaned. He hated the harbors, but he was nodding. "It's doable… I'll need time in a tank after, to purge, but we can do it. I trust him to make the shot look good," he added, pointing at Slade. "Going to have to be early evening, right? So there's enough witnesses."

"Probably," Slade agreed without looking at the table.

"Yeah, that makes sense," Dick agreed, thinking. "Might have to see if I can swap a shift to get that, but there's surely somebody that wants an evening off." 

"Too early in the day tangles me up on getting away too much," Slade said. "Too late, not enough witnesses. So, evening." //And I'll breathe easier once it's done.//

"Pretty sure I can tow you easily enough to a distance where we can get clear," Tempest mused. 

"Good," Dick said, nodding. None of them were going to enjoy this, but... it was simple, it should be quick and clean, and then he'd be out of at least one kind of trouble. "Need to warn Vic, probably need to warn B -- " oh, gods, he didn't want to have that conversation...

"Leave that one to me, Kid. I'm pretty sure Dinah would love an excuse to check in on him anyway," Slade told him gently. "Which means no blabbing to Drake until after you know he's been told, or she won't get the chance," he reminded pointedly.

Tempest laughed at that. "Your stalker boy still that bad even in the costume?"

"Tim wouldn't -- okay, no, he might, especially if Bart's got him upset," Dick had to admit, after a moment. "And... thanks for taking that one." 

"No problem." Slade finished the food off, turned the heat off and moved the pans, then stepped away to pull his phone out. He shifted to the polyglot code they'd worked out, just in case things came up the kids didn't need to hear. "Hey, sister," he said as she answered. 

"Hey baby," she answered, making her brain parse the shifting flow of languages. Grammar from one language, nouns in another, verbs a third… articles tended to be dropped or implied, but it worked for them. "Sorry I had to run."

"The green mask?"

"Taken care of. Was worse than I thought, so I called Power Girl for transport. Now I get to make sure the mainframes are truly cut off and isolated." 

Slade nodded at that, even as he wondered if she was doing that with her particular touch -- blowing things up -- or actually just cutting all cables. "Have a favor to ask. Planning to kill off the Kid's public ID in the next couple of days. Can you drop word to his interested parties at the big house?"

"Wing is good with this?"

"Doesn't like it, knows it's needed."

Dinah sighed. "He'd be a fine damn cop, but he's a hell of a hero. Alright, I'll make sure B knows as soon as I finish up here. Tell my Boy-o I hope to be home by supper time."

"I can do that, sister. See you when I see you."

"See you then, baby." Dinah hung up, and Slade went to get the plate Dick had thoughtfully made for him.

"All arranged, Kid; she's in town down there. Your ex is in medical care, by the way," Slade said, just to get that out of the way.

"What?" Dick stared at him -- he'd gotten lost in that flicking from language to language, not quite certain how it fit together, but it had obviously gotten Slade what he needed. "What's wrong with her?" 

Something, there had been something, but that was months away,and he hadn't had time to look into it then... 

"Brainiac. His first strike was to hide you, and did it through the mini-Bat," Slade told him. "She took care of it."

Dick half-mouthed that name, shaking his head a little... then he blinked, thinking about it. Slade had said that before, that Brainiac had to have hidden him from sight, but this was confirmation, not just Slade's thoughts on the disaster that his life had turned into. //Not going to happen, not going to happen, we're already changing it,// he told himself. 

"So Oracle really is the first Bitgirl?" Tempest asked, nonchalantly, just to give Dick something else to focus on. "We had wagers on if it was her or your little bro under a different name."

Slade snorted at that; Drake would have made a good information gatherer, but he didn't have the experience to manipulate the board the way Oracle did.

Dick snorted and reached out to flick Garth across the back of his head. "Yeah, she is." 

He'd kept that from even the rest of the Fab Five Titans for Oracle's sake, because she'd asked, but since Slade had gone on and let it slip, he saw no reason to hide it. Hiding and keeping secrets, wasn't that a lot of why things had gone so badly in that world that wasn't going to be? 

Slade met his eyes, and Dick had the strangest impression his mentor knew what he was thinking. But then he looked at Garth, half a smile on his face. "If the girl wanted to keep her secrets, she should have been more careful about how she talks to her operatives near people with super-senses."

Garth blinked at him, but Dick turned his head to study Slade's face. "...she almost always uses the voder, I thought even with BC...?" 

"Apparently not right after being on the run." Slade smirked. "It was in my interests to keep silent on how Black Canary was handling her pretense. And in the long run… more than I even knew."

Garth laughed at that tone, as Slade was obviously trying for lightness, for Dick's sake. "Never would have seen it. And Martian Manhunter being so protective over her reputation…"

//Being on the run...// Dick blinked once, twice -- then very firmly shook the thoughts off. He wasn't going to think about when Babs had been on the run, or what had been happening in his life then. It wasn't important, not when he was getting out of the 'Haven anyway. "Yeah, he's been really good about that." 

Slade finished eating his meal then, mind tumbling over the next step. Dick needed to get the proper shift set up, and for that Slade would need a certain rifle. He also knew a few ears to bend here in the city, to help keep the darker paths at bay.

Dick worked on finishing up his own meal, wrapped his arm around Slade's shoulders for a long moment, then went to get that shower he'd mentioned earlier. 

++++

Dinah finished with her task in the Clock Tower, then called over to the manor as she went down to catch a taxi to her place. 

"Wayne Manor," came Alfred's familiar voice. "How may I help you?" 

"Hello, Alfred," Dinah said in her best-behaved voice. "I was curious if Bruce was in or would be soon? I'd like to see him, if I may."

"Miss Lance," Alfred said warmly, "it is good to hear from you. I am sorry that Master Bruce is attending to duties at the office for the moment, but he should be returning within an hour or so. Should I call ahead to him, or will you join us here?"

Dinah took a deep breath as she realized just how free she felt to make the answer. "I'd love to swing by, Alfred. Thank you."

"I will see you when you reach us, then," Alfred answered, and she could hear a smile in his voice, too. 

She headed home then, where she could shower and change as well as pack a bag. A quick call to her general manager, so she could make sure the shop was running fine, and then she was heading over to the manor on her bike. She wanted to have her wheels with her in New York, even if the pads would have been the faster way to get back to everyone. 

She'd taken enough time preparing for her absence from Gotham that she pulled up to the gated driveway just as Bruce was turning on to it. She found herself smiling, playfully revving the bike's engine at him.

The low, sleek Infiniti's engines revved in return, and Bruce pulled the car up along one side of the drive, waiting for her to bring her bike in beside him. The heavily tinted window rolled down, and Bruce flashed her a sharp smile before he glanced up the drive, raising a brow. 

She let her head fall back enough to flash a little throat as she laughed, before she hunkered down on the bike to give him a taste of speed. How long had it been since she had enjoyed teasing him this much? He might know the drive better than she did, but she had always been the better driver, no matter what he thought! 

That heavy engine revved one more time, and then they were both off, racing up the wide, steep drive, twisting around the curves up the hill that led to the Manor. They raced at the best speeds bike and car alike could manage, almost close enough to touch at times. 

The Infiniti slid to a stop a breath ahead of her bike, and Dinah vaulted off as soon as she had it turned off and on the kickstand. "You totally cheated on the third curve," she teased him, pulling her helmet off to leave on the bike. "You had me nearly off the pavement!"

"Half the time that's where you _like_ to run -- though generally that's buildings, not grass," Bruce pointed out as he stepped out of the low-slung car, but there was a touch of a smile on his lips and in his eyes. He stretched out one hand towards her, just a little. "Besides, you picked that line. Hi, Dinah. You look good." 

She took his hand, then used it to pull herself closer to him, hugging him tightly. "You do too, Bruce." She let herself linger there, feeling the way he reacted, feeling some wounds begin to close. She sighed softly when she moved apart from him, looking up into his face. "I did miss you… I can see now that I didn't trust myself for all those years, but I did try a few times to give you a knock on the head to not fall so far away." 

He laid his hand against her back again, looking down at her with darkened eyes. "I -- I know you did, Dinah. It even worked, once or twice. I... missed you, too. Come on inside?"

"I'd be glad to. I've got a message for you… and I just wanted to see you were okay," she told him.

He blinked at her for a moment, then there was more of a smile on his lips. "I'm not, not really. But I'm... coping? Is that the word these days? I went with J'onn to help break the magic on Oliver -- or at least with the aftermath. He's..." 

Dinah wasn't sure what it was in the line of the body or the dip of his voice around Oliver's name, but her eyes blew wide, and then she shook her head side to side, half-smiling. "Really? You two? Well, you're a damn sight better than Hal getting in his life and only half-taking care of him. Not that MoonFace would approve of that either… and what is it with me, my life, and the sign over my head saying 'hi, I fall for bisexual men'?"

Bruce stared at her before he nudged at her again, trying to get her moving on towards the door -- it was good cover for his attempt not to growl over the mention of Hal in Oliver's life. The thought of the Spectre's opinions was little more pleasant -- but then there was that last comment, and he laughed almost despite himself, blinking at her. "I don't see a sign," he told her after another glance at her, perfectly serious.

She grinned up at him, but kept moving. "Tell that to my love life." She laughed softly, thinking of how many men in her life that mattered were bisexual. "I'm sure my current would just say I don't have time for heterosexual men's bullshit."

"...your current?" He hadn't known she was seeing anyone, though there had been something in J'onn's reassurance that she was safe... 

She all but purred. "Yes, and my message is actually from him," she told him once they were in and the door was closed. "I don't know if Timmy's spoken with you about Imp's dream?" she asked, following his lead on where to go.

He headed towards the kitchen -- if there was more trouble, Alfred should know immediately -- as he glanced down at her. "I... received a very terse report a few hours ago, yes. But we haven't spoken in great detail." 

"You've had other things to handle." As soon as she was in the kitchen, though, she had to give Alfred a hug, despite the British reserve, because it had been so long. "Good to see you, Alfred. Leslie mentioned you the last time I dropped in there," she said, slightly teasing note. "She said the cookies were appreciated," she added at the slight hint of reproach in his eyes.

"I am glad of that, Miss Dinah… and it is good to see you." He gave her a fond smile then, before bustling through with the meal preparation.

"Okay, so I have put my official partner into the care of Pieter and Terrific," Dinah said, beginning there. "Ted's on tap, trying to cover, and her equipment is completely disassembled and waiting to be checked over for Big Blue's genius from the future. Speaking of him… I am so totally tearing him a new one if he doesn't start taking the kids seriously on things."

"I saw names of his problems far too often in what Tim sent me," Bruce agreed, his mouth tightening in a thinner line. "I just might help, if he doesn't seem to be listening quickly enough." 

"Ye~ah," Dinah agreed to that. "Anyway… my Boy-o, 'Wing, and my boyfriend all had the dream too, from their angles. Which gave us a lot of pieces to put together that it had already started in Nightwing's case, all of this mess, because of what each one basically lived through in their dreams," she told Bruce, her voice going solemn. "Officer Dick Grayson has to disappear… fast. Before it's all said and done, his ID would be blown, if I caught enough of what was being said correctly."

Alfred went pale, and Bruce's back stiffened instantly, his eyes going to blue ice. "What? How -- he's too careful for that!" 

Alfred only nodded slightly. 

Dinah patted Bruce's hand. "We know that. But that was Brainiac with Oracle's cameras. Plus… Slade says one of the two Luthors he remembers from his dream is the one from Red Skies," she said. "Other dimensions. That gets touchy enough. So they're planning to fake a death, and wanted you aware of it before it happens."

"...those two could do it," Bruce rumbled after a long moment of thought, his hand turning over under hers. "And -- I would like to kick Hal a good one for other dimensions existing again." 

Dinah laughed softly. "You and me both." She laced her fingers in his warmly. "The Titans are nervous, but working their angles. I need to touch base with Timmy, see what Young Justice has focused on. Me? I got Oracle out of the way, and I'm going to be knocking on Fate's door for what in hell they are doing about _her_ pretty soon. Then it's mostly play by ear, listening and watching closely, in order to catch the strings before they unknot into a disaster."

Bruce nodded, holding on to her hand for a long moment. "I'm glad he'll talk to you. He'll talk to me about Gotham, but... Impulse is a good boy, just so young, and the others not much better." His lips took a slightly rueful curve. "He knows I think it, too. ...when you hear from Fate...?" 

Dinah squeezed his hand. "I'll let you know. They've got a time limit. Spectre knows. Slade knows. Either of these mean they have to find the right way quickly," she admitted. There was an edge of hardness in her voice, one that reminded him she'd polished herself on Star City's harder streets. 

"Dear heavens, am I understanding correctly that you've taken up with that most… colorful gentleman, late of the Army?" Alfred asked, more to direct them both off of the actions of Zatanna. It made Dinah laugh, and nod.

"He keeps up with me," she said impishly.

Bruce stared at her, shaking his head for long moments. "Yeah, he might say that," he finally said, rather than anything else. "...be careful, Dinah. Just be careful." 

She looked at him with the most solemn face. "I really am being careful, Bruce. I can't deal with having him caught by Psycho Pirate or Per Degaton," she said in that very serious tone.

It was Alfred that chuckled, while Bruce stared at her wide-eyed. "You... oh, you _ridiculous_ woman. Dick's always said he's a good man, and when I've met him... he's been... well. Difficult, but even-handed." 

Dinah let her laughter out as soon as Alfred laughed, but she nodded to what Bruce was saying. "He's my type and then some," she agreed to all Bruce said of Slade. "Okay, so is there anything I need to know from your side? J'onn put my head back together, but Slade and I had work to get done, and then to the Titans. Anything else pop up?"

Bruce hummed for a moment, then pushed a hand through his hair. "I need J'onn, and Ted once he can get free again, to deal with something I put in motion, but it's nothing your skills can help with -- don't give me that look, you can't breathe in vacuum." 

Dinah wrinkled her nose. "I don't want to go off-world anymore, either." She could feel just a smidge of panic at being that far from Slade and was unsure how much was separation anxiety in the aftermath of a death, and how much was backlash against the events with Light. "Don't pull Ted until you have to; he and Booster almost make an adequate back-up Oracle."

"I know," Bruce agreed, breathing out a sigh. "He's needed right where he is, right now. It can wait a little while." 

"Okay." She smiled at him. "At least I know Ollie's in good hands if you two are… close," she began. "So can you rest easy knowing we're taking care of 'Wing?"

"...I never rest easy," Bruce said, his mouth quirking in a wry smile, "but he'll be in the best hands there are with the Titans... and even him, since he's decided to take this personally." 

Dinah snorted. "He takes things any other way once one of his are involved, or he's manipulated?" She sighed, then smiled up at Alfred as he placed food in front of them. "The other reason I need to see Fate is because of Jericho… need to see if I get to help Slade start believing miracles happen or not."

"Jericho was a lovely young man," Alfred said softly. "Since you speak of Doctor Fate, I must guess that there is hope for him? How?" 

"When J'onn and Garth came to help Slade, because those Spirits were in him, they wound up rescuing Jericho's spirit at the same time." Dinah scrunched her face up to show she did not understand the mechanics. "Apparently J'onn is of the opinion that a soul not in the body when it dies is still a living being? This was apparently a problem on Mars, from the brief mental gist I got off of him." She shrugged then. "I don't care. Roy loved Jericho, and Slade would do near anything for his children. So, good news, I hope, when I see Fate."

"...the strangest things happen in our lives," Bruce said, his head shaking a little. "J'onn would know better than anyone else." 

Dinah nodded at that, before focusing on food and more normal Gotham gossip. She enjoyed the midday meal with them both, before finally pleading the road trip back to the City. As she leaned in to kiss Bruce's cheek in farewell, she gripped his shirt in both her hands, looking up at him dead serious.

"Ollie falls hard, and my tastes apparently run close to his. You keep him… you make him stay tight, you hear? If you're not going to… don't get your heart broken."

She meant it. She loved Oliver still, always would, and yet… he needed to find his own match, one that would hold all of his heart. Just as she had found Slade, she wanted Oliver to have that peace. Bruce had been a crush for her in youth and as Batman… so she did love him as well, in a different way.

Bruce stared at her, shocked, turning her words over and over in his mind, feeling for sharp edges of them, before he smiled at her and pressed a kiss to her own cheek. "Thank you, Dinah. I... don't intend to let go again. Not the same world we were young in, after all." 

She smiled at him for that. "No, it isn't. Doesn't mean we can't still make it better." She pulled free then and left, pleased by the afternoon.


End file.
